Dang. That new iPhone is sexy. I say this having recently been in California where it seemed like everyone had one. Everyone except me. I'm a Verizon guy--and the reason is my whole extended family is on this provider, meaning our family plan allows for limitless free calls between one another. Practical. Not sexy.
I long for an iPhone. Man, those apps...that GPS navigation in real time. The ability to find online answers to questions in mid-conversation. That nice camera. Listening to iTunes. I could go on...
But in the spirit of holiness, I will refrain. If Moses were to chisel the 1oth commandment now, surely its command against covetousness would include "thy neighbor's iPhone." Verily, I wilt be content with my Verizon Motorola phone...for now.
What this sexy explosion of techonology showed me is that we've passed the point of no return technologically: people are wired 24/7 and that gives us new opportunities--as well as new challenges--in communication. I predict (and I'm no prophet, certainly) that within two years most phones will be "smart"--and that accessing the web from our phones will be commonplace. Again, as God's people, as the Church, how will we keep pace? I think this is nothing short of a paradigm shift parallel to Gutenberg's printing press. What think ye?
3 comments:
I totally agree with you, Carl -- both in my own covetousness for an iPhone, and in your assessment that the shift we are undergoing is on a par with the arrival of the printing press...in fact, in many ways I wonder if mobile technology that's always "on" will be even more transformative for our culture and individual psyches. I'm working on a blog post of my own, in fact, espousing the digital-tech-free family vacation...something I cherish yet struggle to choose, addicted as I am to being online. Which, of course, the iPhone I'm sure to eventually get will only compound!
Compound and confound! I suspect the answer to a lot of this technological obsession (and compulsion) is the practice of the classic spiritual disciplines--of solitude, silence, fasting, spiritual friendship, prayer, etc. Tempered by these disciplines, technology becomes the servant, not the master, of our lives. God grant us grace as we live into new paradigms and ancient practices! Thanks for your thoughts, Wendy.
I love that juxtaposition: new paradigms and ancient practices. It can be "both/and." As with so much in our spiritual life. There has never been an age in which our faith did not have to adapt to a changing world, and yet those disciplines are the anchors that can keep us tethered to that which is unchanging. It is actually a Buddhist friend of mine whom I most admire as far as her commitment to keeping sacrosanct that time apart in retreat, meditation, contemplation...she goes on several solo spiritual retreats each year (no kids!) and finds it essential to keep herself grounded. Much I feel I can adapt to my Christian practice as well, though I am more intentional than actual at this point, unfortunately.
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